Improvement in fire-escapes



i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AARON SHUTE, OF FLUSHING, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN FIRE-ESCAPES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 36,032, dated July 29, 184,2.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, AARON SHUTE, of Flushing, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Fire-Escape; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a side sectional view of my invention, taken in the line w w, Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a front view of the same. Fig. 3 is a side view of the same applied to a building.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to an improvement on a re-escape for which Letters Patent were granted to me bearing date November l2, 1861, and which consisted in the employment or use of a flexible ladder fitted lin a box so arranged as to be capable of being tilted when necessary and admit of the ladder falling to the ground or pavement. In this patented invention the parts were so arranged as to render the device a fixture, or one that required to be fitted permanently to the building, involving considerable expense, as mechanics skilled in such work could only be employed in adapting it to the building. Y

The object of the within-described invention and improvement is to construct and arrange the several parts in such a manner that the device may be made separately from the building, beperfect or complete in itself, and capa'- ble of being applied to any building without the exercise of any mechanical skill, and still possess all the advantages of the patented device, with others hereinafter set forth.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct my invention, I will proceed to describe it.

A representsa box; which may be of any proper form, provided with a door, B, at its back and a door, C, at its front end. The back door, B, may be connected to the box by hinges at one side, but the front door, C, is connected to the box by hinges a at its bottom, as shown in Fig. 1.

Within the box A there is placed a reel, D, one of the journals b of which extends through the side of the box and is provided with a square to receive alcrank, E, by which the reel is turned when necessary. In large devices,

however. two hand-wheels, c, may be attached to the reel for the convenience of turning it. To the reel D a flexible ladder,F, is attached. This ladder may be constructed of two chains, d d, connected at suitable distances apart by cross-rods c, as shown clearly in Fig. 2. The ladder thus constructed is allowed to wind freelyupon the reel D. The outer end of the ladder has a crossbar, G, connected to it, provided With a flange, f, extending all around its outer edges. l

Within the box A there is placed a spring, H,

which,when the door C is closed, bears against it and has a tendency to force it open, as will be understood by referring to Fig. 1, and in the upper edge of the door C there is made a recess, g, sufficiently deep to allow the body lof the cross-bar G to lit into it, but not to al low the flange f to pass through.

The reel D is provided with a ratchet, I, at one end, into which a pawl, J, catches, said pawl being attached to the inner surface of one side of the box A. (See Figs. l and 2.) rlhe pawl J extends through the back part of the box A, so that it may be conveniently raised free from the ratchet l when it is necessary to release the reel. The front door, C, is retained in a closed state by means of two hooks, h h, which are at the front ends of two bars, K K, attached one to each side of the box A, as shown at t', and these bars K are con` nected by arms j to the back ends of levers L, which are fitted on a shaft, k, within the box A. One of the levers L has a pendent rod, M, connected to it, which extends down from the box any desirable distance. On the back end of one or both of the leversL aspring, N, bears, the latter having a tendency to keep the hooks h in the staples or eyesl at the inner side and upper part of the door C.

The operation is as follows: When the device is not in use, the ladder F is wound up on the reel D, the bar G at its end being in the recess g at the upper end of the door C. The box A is secured to the roof of the building near the eaves, trough, or gutter, as shown clearly in Fig. 3. In case of lire, the pawl J is raised free from the ratchet I, and the rod M is drawn downward, and the hooks h It consequently raised from the staples or eyes Z of the door C, which is then forced open under the action of the spring H, and the ladder F falls and unwinds from the reel D byits own grave acosa ity. When the end of the ladder reaches the pavement or ground,it is firmly secured in position and the reel D turned backward a trifle to render the ladder taut. The inmates ofthe house can descend the ladder from the roof,or the ladder may be brought in contact with any window which isin line withitand egress be made from the window, as shown in Fig. The ladder is Wound up on the reel D by turning the latter, and when the bar G comes in contact with the outer or upper end of the front door, C, it raises the latter and closes it, so that the hooks h 7i may be forced into the staples or eyes l by the spring or springs N.

The box A may be made of any form to correspond to the architecture of the building on which it is to be placed. It 1nay,for instance, be made in the forni of a dormer-window, the cap of a tower, cupola, Ste. The tightening of the ladder by turning back the reel is a very great advantage, as the ladder thereby may be strained stiff, so that persons may descend it in safety. This advantage my previous patented device does not possess, and the ladder, in consequence of being wound upon the reel D, is allowed to fall more readily and is not so liable to kinkA when folded as formerly. By the latter arrangement, also, the device is perfect or complete in itself, and may be made and sold Without reference to the securing of them to the building, for the device only requires to be bolted or secured to the roof in order to be ready for use. The

rod M, by which the door C is released, may extend down within the building, and a rod may also be connected to the pawl J and made to extend down within the building. I do not, however, confine myself to any particular manner of arranging these rods.

I would remark that at the inner side ofthe door C, at its outer part, there is attached a roller, ax, to admit of theladder in its descent passing freely over the end of the door.

I do not claim, broadly, a flexible ladder arranged so as to be capable of falling by its own gravity, for that has been previousy used Y for a re-escape and may be seen in the device formerly patented by me; but,

Having thus described my invention, what I do claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is*

l. The iieXible ladder F, in combination with the reel D and box A, provided with the door C, all arranged to operate as and for the purpose herein set forth.

2. The particular manner of closing the door C, securing it in a closed state, and releasing it-to wit, by means of the hooks h. 71., attached to the bars K, actuated through the niediurn of the arms j, levers L, rod M, and spring or springs N, in connection with the cross-bar G at the end ofthe iieXible ladder F, as herein described.

AARON SHUTE.

Witnesses:

JAMES LAIRD, RIcHARDsoN GAWLEY. 

